


The Tales of Aella Adaar

by Babzwritesthings



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Child Adaar, F/F, Fluff, Pre-Dragon Age: Inquisition, Teen Adaar, The Conclave, lots of nose bleeds, nose bleeds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-18
Updated: 2016-11-10
Packaged: 2018-08-23 06:36:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8317612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Babzwritesthings/pseuds/Babzwritesthings
Summary: A collection of short stories of Aella Adaar (also crowned as 'Jaws' by Varric) pre inquisition and onwards.





	1. Teddy Bears and Kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AKA: Sticks and stones may break my bones (but so will fists to the nose). A story of child Adaar way before the events of the inquisition. There's mocking, there's shouting, and there's teddy bear fluff everywhere.

Aella Adaar had never punched anyone in the face until now, but she knew that with a bit of practise, this was what she was made to do. She heard the crunch of a nose and saw the blood immediately gush out of the young boy's face. Her eyes narrowed on him and his friends as they continued to hold torn up pieces of teddy bear that were frayed at the seams. It was dirty. Didn't seem like it was worth a lot, but when Aella saw the crocodile tears well up in that girl's eyes, she couldn't just stand there.

  
She ripped the the toy from their hands and flashed her horns at them, which at that point, were only small stubs that she usually tried to cover with her hair. They yelped and stumbled a few steps away from her glaring form. She did nothing but cross her arms, but they still flinched.

  
“You're nothing but a monster!” The young boy snapped at her, bloody spit spraying everywhere. His words weren't exactly new, but Aella wasn't used to it being said to her face like that. She was the one to step away from him when he jabbed a finger at her. “My parents will hear about this. The whole village will!”

  
Aella's fingers tightened around around the bear she held and her glare wavered for only a second. She huffed and growled before kicking a bunch of rocks at their shins causing the boys to scatter. “It's not like they'll be surprised, so go ahead!” She shouted back and twisted away from them. She knew she was wrong for punching one of the boys in the face, but damn, did she have fun doing it. Was that wrong of her to think? Surely her parents would say so, especially with the trouble she had been getting into recently.

  
Storming away from them, she marched with purpose through the village. Stall owners and their customers scoffed and avoided eye contact as Aella walked past. They wanted nothing to do with her kind. They didn't care that she was a child. They knew what she was going to turn into. Just a simple minded thug that would be out for money and have no morals. Who's to say that she would hold sentimentality over some poorly village she wasn't even born into. They were not taking any chances with a qunari.

  
Aella paid no mind as she made her way in the direction of home. There were a few farms and wooden houses close by, and as she neared them, she noticed the girl again, still crying on the stony slope that paved the way to the entrance of her house.

  
Aella's walking slowed. Her hands didn't seem to be clenched so tightly when she looked at the girl. Even her heated glare had softened into something much closer to wonder.

  
The girl had blonde hair that hung at her shoulders in choppy waves. The cut was rougher than most of the boys around and that's what Aella liked about it. That, and it framed such a pretty face. It was round, as most kids faces were at their age, and had only a few of the faintest scratches on them from playing and falling over in the field. Aella was sure that she wouldn't care what scratches found their way on her face because they only seemed to make her prettier.

  
“I couldn't stop them from breaking it, but I managed to get all the parts,” Aella said quietly, offering up a leg of the teddy bear, along with the rest of the body. When the girl said nothing, Aella felt that her heart was trying to stretch itself past the pit of her stomach. They had never really talked much. Aella was used to parents pulling away their children when she'd want to play with them, so she never really expected to make friends. Still, that didn't stop her wanting them. Especially ones with pretty blonde hair and scuffed up faces.

  
“I punched Bradley in the face for it...” The girl's face suddenly morphed into a state of shock before something happened that made Aella feel like punching people in the face would be totally worth the hassle.

  
She smiled. Actually smiled. At her! Aella couldn't believe it. She felt like her heavy body that usually trudged and tumbled was weightless. She could feel a smile of her own growing and with a sudden thought, she felt self conscious at someone seeing her teeth. Usually the sight of her teeth meant that she was threatening to bite someone, not smile. Still, the slight embarrassment was quelled at the girl's mischievous eyes.

  
“Did you make him bleed?” The girl jumped up, rubbing any wetness from her face and motioned for Aella to come closer.

  
Aella laughed at her question and nodded, rushing ahead but stopping when a hand shot up to halt her in her place. She was lower down on the paved slope, and for once, Aella found herself looking eye to eye with someone. It was strange, but it gave her a better view of the girl's face. A better view of her eyes. Aella definitely decided she liked seeing them this close.

  
The girl snickered at Aella's nod and then leant forward, giving her a peck on the lips. “Thanks, Adaar. I'll be sure to come to you when they pick on me again.”

  
Aella didn't even feel the teddy get removed from her hands. She was too focused on the feeling of someone's lips smacking against hers. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was parted to say something, even when there was nothing in her brain other than the sound of lips smacking together. The girl giggled and patted Aella's shoulder before she began to skip back to her house. It was only then did Aella find her voice.

  
“Wait!” Aella blinked and looked up at the girl that was retreating. She stopped her skipping and turned her head, smile still on her face. “What's you're name?” Aella felt dumb that she didn't know anything about this girl, other than she was pretty, and that Aella didn't like seeing tears and snobs run down her face.

  
“Miriam. Don't forget it, kay?”

  
“Miriam?” Aella whispered and looked up at her. Miriam seemed to be in brighter spirits with the broken teddy pressed against her chest. She flashed Aella a wicked grin which caused her to snicker and flash one back. “Who'd you steal that name from, you're Grandma?”

  
“Yep! So you better get used to it,” Miriam laughed and waved her teddy around like it was illustrating her point.

  
Aella's eyes widened and then she laughed at the flopping teddy, stuffing flying out of the seams every now and again. She could definitely get used to hanging around Miriam more often.

  
“I'm usually the one people have to get used to,” Aella added and couldn't stop smiling at the expression on Miriam's face. She poked her tongue out and made a fart sound at Aella's words.

  
Though, she sucked her tongue back in her mouth when there was a knock from the other side of the window. Both Aella and Miriam looked towards the sound to see Miriam's mother standing by the window inside the house. She looked sternly at her daughter before glancing at Aella. There was an unspoken communication between mother and daughter that said Miriam shouldn't be talking to a qunari girl on their doorstep. It made Aella's smile fall.

  
“Oi, I prefer it when you show your teeth. Smile for me, Adaar.” Miriam didn't asked, she ordered, but giggled when Aella peaked up at her with a confused expression. “Not a smile, but we'll work on it. I'll see you around, Aella.” Miriam waved and opened the door, not taking a second breath before shouting something at her mother.

  
The door closed on her and she stood there for a moment, completely dumbfounded by Miriam. This was the first time she had experienced such positivity from someone her own age. Never in her life did she think she would have her first kiss at such a young age, but thinking about it now, she felt butterflies fumble about in her stomach.

  
Her confused expression morphed, and her cheeks lifted until she was grinning like a fool. Laughter slipped from her as she turned around and made her way back home. She didn't realise it, but she didn't trudge along like usual. She walked tall, with her back straight and her head held high. She ran her fingers over her hair, pulling and tugging at some pieces until it was braided back to show off the horns that were growing longer each day.

  
Even if Miriam's mother knocked on the window every day, or interrupted their time together every five minutes, Aella still couldn't wait to see the girl again. She hopped for Miriam to become her first friend, but in reality, Aella hoped that their relationship could include just that little bit more. Lip smacking included.


	2. The origin of the Inquisitor's fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fifteen year old Aella didn't have many fears until this night, but when a fear demon infiltrates her village, she soon learns what frightens her most.

Everyone had their houses locked up. Aella watched as her mother slammed a wooden beam across their door and spun around to meet her gaze. She jabbed her finger in the air towards her and frowned.

 

“Don't you dare think about going out there. Do you hear me, Aella?”

 

Aella mirrored her mother's expression even when their faces were so different. Where Aella was a dark grey, her mother had pale skin and orange freckles smattered across her cheeks. No horns were present in her curly red hair but that didn't matter. Seeing them together, anyone could tell their relation through the frown on their face and the narrow set of their eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest. She stood a whole foot taller than her, even at the age of fifteen, but that did nothing to squash her mother's ruling over their household.

 

“Why not? What's going on?” Aella questioned, peaking past the curtains covering most of the window by the door. She saw strange shapes and colours take over the poor souls that were outside. There were only a couple of people from what Aella could make out. Each of their mouths pried open as if they were frozen in their screams. They looked to be in agony, like any little piece of themselves was getting torn and twisted by something foreign invading their bodies. Green mist curled around them. Under them. Inside them. They glowed, choked, battled, and shook. Aella stepped forward to get a better look, but her view was blocked when her mother tugged the curtains to a full close.

 

“Listen to me, will you child?” Aella noted that her mother sounded more serious than usual. Despite her frown, she placed a gentle hand on her arm and pushed her away from the windows. “I don't want you getting involved in this sort of thing. We must stay hidden until everything blows over.” As her mother spoke, her voice crackled. She hurried around extinguishing every flame that was used to light up the room. Small candles were blown out first and then the fireplace was blanketed quickly in dirt, smothering the flames instantly.

 

They were stood in complete darkness. All Aella could see clearly were the occasional flashes of silhouettes surrounded by white and green light. Snapshots captured themselves against the curtains and Aella found herself lured by the carnage outside. She wanted to do something. Not hide under the covers until whatever was going on took the lives of her village.

 

“Aella, don't,” her mother warned. She was next to her with a firm grip on Aella's wrist, pulling her away from the window and into the back bedroom. “We should worry about ourselves before worrying about them. What have they ever done to deserve your help?”

 

Aella stiffened and pulled her arm from her mother. All those times she had been shunned from the older members of the village. Their backs turned towards her, just so they wouldn't have to make eye contact. If they didn't see Aella, then they could pretend that they didn't notice her. They weren't going out of their way to make her life miserable, so they weren't at fault. At least not all of them.

 

Their mentality seeped down to their family members. People like Bradley undoubtedly had parents that had chatted, bickered, bellowed their distaste about the lone Qunari living amongst their children. They never spoke to Aella's face, but she saw their looks. They were echoed on their son's face. Their voices were entwined in his voice every time he snapped and snickered at her. They made her hate her grey skin when she was younger. Made her think of ways to do her hair so her horns would be hidden. So many nights she held a mirror in one hand and a file in the other, in some lame attempt of keeping the horned stubs short so she'd have less trouble in hiding them.

 

Did the people deserve her help, Aella wondered. Did they deserve any effort to save them when surely they wouldn't give her the same respect? All her life she had been made to feel like she was only worth the colour of her skin. Only worth the horns on her head. And yet, there was something in Aella that couldn't hate them completely, just like she could never fully hate herself. She could never file down her horns. She could never cover all her skin. And looking at the twisting silhouettes splaying into her living room, Aella realised that she could never just leave them without even trying.

 

“It doesn't matter if they deserve my help or not. They don't deserve to suffer, Ma. I'll be exactly what they think of me if I don't help.” Aella started walking toward the door, hearing the sounds of possession clearer and clearer from outside.

 

“You shouldn't have to prove yourself to anyone, Aella!” her mother snapped. “There are houses out there that are doing exactly as we are, and they're not going to be blamed for wanting to save themselves and their family. Why must you be so difficult?!”

  
Aella growled at her mother and slammed her fist against the door. “I don't know, Ma! It's the way I am, so let me do this. I'm not going to be leaving you forever.”

 

“I've heard that before,” her mother responded within a heartbeat.

 

Aella turned around and placed both hands on her mother's arms, giving them a gentle squeeze. Bending down, Aella pulled her close to her chest and hugged her tightly.

 

“And I'll tell you an _'I told you so'_ when I make it back home alive. I know you're worried about me, but I'm coming back.” There was a force tugging her towards battle. If all she was going to be good for was a fight, she might as well be fighting for the right side.

 

Yeah, the village had arseholes. Some right fuck ups that hated her. But with everything that was happening, they weren't worth the hassle they had created. They were a blip that Aella realised she didn't care about any more. The only things going through her head were the people like Miriam that lived in her village. People that didn't always turn away from her. That gave her kisses. That loved her.

 

“This is my village and I'm not going to let it get destroyed.” Aella let go of her mother quickly. “You can't stop me.”

 

Aella's mother pursed her lips and smacked her daughter's arms roughly out of frustration. Aella barely moved. She wore an expression of sympathy that only made her mother let out a growl of frustration. It made Aella's lips tug for a split second, knowing where she had picked up that habit.

 

“If you don't come back at the end of this, I'll kill you myself, my girl,” she huffed and smacked her hands against Aella's cheeks, pulling her down to press a harsh kiss against her head. Aella let out a shaky laugh and patted her mother on the back seeing as nodding was not an option.

 

“I don't doubt that, Ma,” Aella said gently. She was surprised when she didn't have to pry her mother's hands from her face. She took a step away and gave her one last look before pulling the wooden beam away from the door. “Lock this up when I go.”

 

“You don't get to tell me what to do, child.” Her mother scoffed and forced a shovel into her daughter's hand before she had time to exit into the night. With the door open, flickers of light from the battles lit up parts of their entryway, casting a strange mirage of shadows over their faces.

 

It was raining now, as per usual in the Free Marches, and sounds of thunder rumbled over them. Aella looked back at her mother giving her a silent request of listening to her this once. She sighed but nodded curtly before slamming the door in her face.

 

Aella saw the curtains flutter a moment later before she turned her back on her house. She stepped away from her home, picking up speed until she was bolting towards the centre market, shovel in her hands.

 

The rain lashed against Aella's skin and mud splattered up her legs. She was rushing to the sound of screams, but as she turned a corner towards her destination, an arm shot out, whacking her hard in the chest. The sudden block made her slip and skid on the wet ground. She dug her feet in the mud and whipped the shovel around to meet whatever had attempted to knock her down.

 

“Where are you going, Adaar?” There stood Bradley, cradling his arm to his chest as he glared at her.

 

“Isn't it obvious, Bradley?” Aella swiped the rain off her face and dropped her weapon back to her side. She kicked up some of the mud and her chest heaved with ragged breathing.

 

“You shouldn't really be farming on a night like this.” He snorted and mirrored her movement, dropping his arm back at his side. He still frowned at her, his brown hair plastered against his forehead no matter how many times he tried to flick it away. It clung to skin wherever it could and only curled against the collar of his soaked shirt.

 

“And you shouldn't really be whacking girls in the chest on a night like this either.” Aella quipped back. “I'm going to the market.”

 

“I wouldn't really call you much of a girl, so I'm not worried,” he muttered, but then the glare fell from his face. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Aella with what almost seemed like the tiniest hint of concern. Aella was convinced it must have been the water in both of their eyes. “Do you have a death wish or something? Nobody is out tonight other than the drunkards.”

 

“Do you really think the people screaming in the market are drunk?” Aella stiffened when she heard the rumble of a scream echo from just around the corner. Her grip tightened on her weapon and she lifted it as she bore her gold eyes into Bradley's brown ones.

 

“That's what my parents are saying.” Bradley's voice was uncharacteristically quiet. His shoulders were just as tensed at Aella's, and his fingers fidgeted as if he wanted something to hold onto.

 

“I know how much you like listening to your parents, Bradley.” Aella voice tapered off when the screams had died down. She suddenly felt very vulnerable. Exposed. She took a step to move against the wall next to Bradley and glanced at the last corner that led to the centre market.

 

“Adaar.” Bradley whispered when Aella started to creep along the walls. He followed her movement, and they both tilted their heads around the corner.

 

In the centre of the market was something Aella had never seen before. The _thing_ hovered and glowed green as it flew towards a woman that had cradled herself on the ground. She shook and whimpered, making no attempt to fend for herself against the talons that protruded out of the creature's back. Aella felt her throat constrict and bubbles of fear started to make her sick when she realised the talons looked a lot like bony spider legs. They were smooth and razor sharp with strings of webs hanging from them. Aella imagined herself being wrapped up in wires unable to escape. The thought terrified the breath out of her and she almost lost her grip on her shovel if it wasn't for Bradley bumping into her.

 

“The drunkards are looking a bit different, I see,” he muttered and Aella couldn't hold back the urge to roll her eyes. He successfully pulled her out of her own nightmarish thoughts. Even if they still lingered in the back of her mind, her annoyance (and slight respect) at Bradley's words took precedence.

 

Unfortunately, Bradley's words seemed to take precedence for the monster as well. As soon as the words left his mouth, the creature turned it's body around to face them both.

 

“Of course you decide to hear that.” Aella scoffed and grounded her stance as the demon started to float towards them. She grimaced when spiders started to spill and crawl down it's body, letting them drop and scuttle towards them.

 

“Oh bloody hell.” She ground out as they pinched and bit, trying to clamber their way up Aella's legs as she kicked and stomped at them. She let out a shout and swung her weapon around, aiming to slice this demon lighting up the immediate area in a green haze.

 

Aella didn't notice any blood, just a bigger onslaught of spiders that only seemed to get louder and bigger. The sounds of pincers that snapped at her boot buckles made her want to yell as she squished each spider down. The more she fought, the more that seemed to appear. Their hairy bodies were the size of dogs in the village and not nearly as cute. In fact, they weren't cute at all. Aella hated seeing the creepy, crawling spiders in any form, much less when they were super sized.

 

Bradley had tried to get a better footing when they first scurried at them, but the ground kept moving from under him. Spiders made him slip and stumble and it wasn't until he gripped a hold of Aella's arm could he right himself. He used her for balance as he swung his foot back and kicked a spider into the air right when Aella slammed her shovel into it, slicing it clean in half.

 

They both blinked in surprise and glanced at each other before they began to repeat the process. Any surrounding people that had whimpered on the floor had managed to scatter away when the demon had its attention turned away from them. Aella couldn't blame them really. She knew she was at least a little bit insane to walk into this battle, but she was glad that she wasn't alone.

 

She reminded herself never to be thankful for Bradley's presence other than this moment.

 

“They just keep coming!” Bradley huffed as he pulled Aella away from an especially large talon aiming for her chest. She yelped and swung her weapon, snapping the bone with a large crack. It dangled from the demon's back and, naturally, it only enraged the demon even more.

 

Aella's heart was on it's way to climbing up her throat and using her tongue as a diving board to exit her body. She gasped for breath, her eyes wide as she stumbled away with Bradley when the demon cried out into the night. The spider's reacted to the call and suddenly stopped chasing after the teenagers. They froze for a second before they began to retreat back to their creator, climbing over each other until they were covering the demon completely in a coat of moving legs and hairy bodies.

 

“I think I'm going to be sick,” Aella muttered. She could hear Bradley's shaky breath, and when she glanced at him, she could see all the scratches that bloomed blood on his tan skin. She assumed that she wasn't much better, but she didn't want to look. As soon as she looked at a cut, it only seemed to hurt ten times worse.

 

“So would this be a bad time to say that thing is flying towards us,” Bradley rushed out as Aella whipped her head around. Her eyes widened and her legs didn't quite work as they should have. She stumbled and pushed Bradley away from the flying demon, landing him on the floor while she was still in the way.

 

She twisted her body around in attempt to smack the demon into the ground. Though, the only thing that happened was that a few spiders flew off it's face.

 

“Why the heck did you do that for?!” Bradley snapped at her from the ground.

 

“Trust me, I didn't mean to push you out of the way!” Aella snapped back honestly and she heard a grumble at her response. She slipped in the growing puddles surrounding them. Her arms and legs felt like they had weights tied to them with every swing she attempted. She was getting tired. Which meant that she was pretty close to getting fucked.

 

She should have really been paying attention to her surroundings because when she was forced against a wall she cursed out loud. There was nowhere to go. Bradley didn't have a weapon. She had a shovel. And the fear demon ahead of her still had multiple ways to kill her poking out of its back.

 

Even their hands were razor sharp as it sliced across Aella's face. She shouted in pain and screwed her eyes shut, slamming her shovel around blindly.

 

She wasn't sure, but she thought there was the sound of footsteps coming closer. The sound of a sword being unsheathed. She didn't open her eyes until she heard the cry of the demon and then fall of the spiders around them. She gasped when the point of a broadsword was a couple of inches away from her throat.

 

It poked out of the demon's stomach and with a final scream the creature disappeared in an explosion of green mist and spider gunk. Aella expected the sword to fall, but as the mist dissipated she could see someone holding onto it. Their muscles were tensed and they had dark skin like her.

 

She blinked in realisation, slowly sliding her eyes over the muscles, and onto the horns that were decorated with metal cuffs. Her mouth was open, despite the smell of freshly evaporated spiders in the air. She had never seen another Qunari in her life, and all she could think was this was her first meeting with one that had saved her mother from storming into the market to kill her twice over.

 

“You're a Qunari,” Aella muttered dumbly.

 

“I'm your saviour too.” Their voice was smooth and velvety. Aella snapped her mouth shut, feeling embarrassment at gawking at the grey skin and horns that separated this Qunari woman's long hair.

 

“This your long lost sister or something, Adaar?” Bradley questioned, peaking his head around the Qunari's body. The woman frowned down at him and nudged him towards Aella with the flat of her sword.

 

“Not all Qunari are related, boy,” she informed him. Her eyes flitted to Aella for a moment and it made Aella feel more self conscious than she'd ever felt before. At least when people judged her in the village, they didn't know what they were talking about when it came to Qunari people. But this woman was different. She knew. She was a true Qunari to Aella.

 

“You two shouldn't be outside at this time. You should head home,” the lady ordered them simply. It seemed she had a commanding tone about her. Of course, that could be down to the fact that she held a broadsword in her hand that was covered in blood.

 

“Yeah, that's what we were planning,” Bradley muttered, tugging on Aella's coat as he nodded back the way they came from. “Lets go, Adaar.”

 

“Ah...yeah.” Aella found it hard to form a proper sentence. So with a small nod at their saviour, she quickly made her way from the market with Bradley next to her.

 

When they were out of earshot, she released a breath and glanced behind her. The woman was gone as if she didn't even exist.

 

“It was stupid of me to actually think you two were related,” Bradley started. Aella turned her head back round to look at his face curiously. This was almost sounding like an apology, and that made Aella suspicious.

 

“Oh you really think so?” Aella uttered with sarcasm filling in the cracks in her tired voice.

 

“Yeah, she was actually cool.” Bradley smirked and then yelped when Aella tapped him behind his knees with her shovel. He stumbled and glared at her, only making her laugh tiredly.

 

“Cooler than you, Bradley. Not much competition though.”

 

“Yeah- well- say that when you don't have that shovel,” he fumbled with his words, but didn't seem as irritated as he usually did with Aella.

 

She supposed fighting a fear demon that spewed killer spiders could bring just about anyone closer together. Even people that had crooked noses from a punch a few years back.

 

Glancing at Bradley's cuts and flowering bruises, Aella smiled slightly knowing that she probably looked quite similar. She turned her head away before he could catch her expression. “I suppose next time you'll have to have a weapon yourself so I don't have to do all the work.”

 

“Piss off, Aella!” Bradley snapped before he stormed off in the direction of his house. He raised his hand in the air without turning around, only having his middle finger raised.

 

Aella snickered and began to trudge back to her home where a bollocking would surely be waiting for her. Even at the thought, Aella couldn't stop the smile from spreading on her face. Somehow, she felt like it was worth it.


	3. One too many Qunari's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A village can mold a girl without her realising it. Mold her thoughts. Prejudices. Actions. Sometimes a punch to the face is what you need to get a sense of clarity. Or at least that's the case for Aella Adaar at age 17.

 

Aella had been sent on an errand for her mother when she heard the news. It came in parts. Little patches of conversations she heard from different people in town. They were used to her presence now. They treated her with a little bit more warmth after they had heard what she had done for the village when the demon attacked. Of course they boasted up Bradley, expanding his ego, much to Aella's discomfort. But she was happier overall. She hadn't heard the usual title of 'Qunari child' tagged to her for quite some time. It pleased her to feel like maybe she was fitting herself into the village.

 

“There's another Qunari that's visiting.” Aella heard one person mutter. Her eyebrows creased and she slowed her walk to try and pick up as much of the conversation as she could. Another Qunari? That wasn't a good thing.

 

“She apparently visited a few years ago, but was only passing through. Now she's staying for a few nights. I hope she goes soon. One's enough.” At the last statement, Aella struggled to catch what the person had said. They had lowered their voices when they had caught Aella's eye. There was still some distrust between her and the humans from the way they turned their backs towards her.

 

Aella balled her hands into fists, feeling frustrated that some Qunari person can come waltzing into her home and ruin the reputation she was slowly trying to build up. It was hard enough getting people to forget that she was a Qunari. Let alone getting people to like her. This Qunari woman visiting the village was only going to make people remember their distrusting feelings they had towards Aella's race.

 

She stormed in the direction of the inn, curiosity and anger clouding her judgement. If she was a sane person, she would know that forgetting an errand her mother sent her on was practically punishable by death, but she wasn't really thinking. She was judging. She fuelled herself on thoughts of all the stories she was told about Qunari people throughout her lifetime. The way they would rob and pillage just to line their pockets with gold. The way that they'd hurricane through a village and leave it in ruins. She'd heard too many stories that were imprinted onto her by other villagers. It made her so angry. She was livid that other people's actions could dictate the way she was treated, even as a child. Even now.

 

Preparing to turn the corner, she stopped when she spotted the source of all the gossip. A Qunari woman training in a field before the inn. Aella immediately recognised her as the woman that had killed the demon that haunted her village a couple of years back. She didn't look any different.

 

The sword she had used to slay the fear demon lay on the ground as the woman took to practising her combat skills. “Is this private property, I will leave if there's a problem.” She stated, not really bothering to stop her training. She blinked when she finally turned her head to Aella. “Oh, I see it's only you.”

 

“Only me?” Aella huffed at her. She shook her head, “What are you doing here? Wasn't visiting once enough for you? You're causing a lot of gossip.”

 

The woman merely shrugged and went back to training. “I'm here on business.”

 

“What business is that? You've killed the demon, so don't move onto the people around here. We're pretty poor, so it's not like you'll make any money from us.” Aella sputtered her warning out, stealing this woman's weapon from the ground. Not much of a steal when the other Qunari didn't even bat an eyelid.

 

“For a Qunari, you seem awfully judgemental of me. My name is Katoh by the way, pleasure to meet you again. You are the Qunari girl I met before. Adaar I believe?” Katoh narrowed her eyes on Aella. She was barely exerting any energy as she trained. She didn't seem phased at the burst of movement from Aella in the slightest.

 

“The only reason I call myself a Qunari is because that's what everyone else says I am. I'm nothing like you though,” Aella reasoned. Her chest heaved and her skin was clammy with sweat sharpening the cold breeze that bristled past them. Her arms were shaking from holding onto the weapon. An actual weapon this time, not a shovel from her mother's garden. Katoh's eyes flicked to Aella's trembling muscles and her scowl only seemed to deepen. It made Aella self conscious when put under that scrutinizing gaze. She tightened her grip and lifted the greatsword higher to prove that she wasn't weak, despite her muscles shaking even more in protest.

 

“I know you're nothing like me,” Katoh responded with distaste as she stepped closer to Aella. Her movement casual and non threatening until the last moment where she punched Aella in the side and then twisted her left arm. “If you were, you wouldn't have let me do that.”

 

Aella hissed and dropped her sword, ripping her arm from Katoh. She glared at her and stepped away. “That's not what I meant,” she snapped, baring her teeth at Katoh, who cut her off with a raised hand. Aella flinched and backed up once again.

 

“I _know_ what you meant, Adaar.” Katoh's voice was sharp and that caused Aella's heart to bounce around her chest. “You may have dark skin and horns, but you are not a Qunari as far as I'm concerned.”

 

Aella had been waiting to hear that sentence fall from the mouths of her neighbours and friends. Yet, when it was said by a Qunari mercenary she didn't feel the satisfaction that she thought she would. A pit began to grow in her stomach and she felt oddly empty at Katoh's statement. Her body was what made her who she was. What gave her strength. What made her grow as a person. When she was younger, she was told that she wasn't part of the village. She was an outsider just because she was a Qunari through her features. But now she was neither.

 

Who was she, if not a Qunari girl from the Free Marches.

 

“I'm just a different kind of Qunari,” Aella tried to reason, though her response didn't hold as much confidence as she wanted. Her voice cracked through her sentence. As she spoke, Katoh's eyes didn't move from her. She just grunted and raised an eyebrow, making Aella want to retreat even more.

 

“So tell me, what kind of Qunari are you?” Katoh asked. She didn't leave Aella any time to respond as she quickly interjected the breath that Aella took to speak. “Definitely not one that can save herself or a friend.”

 

“That was...that's not fair. I was only fifteen then, I had never held a weapon before.” Aella frowned at her. The attack on the village had happened just over two year ago. She had heard about demons, but had never fought one before. She felt pretty accomplished that she didn't die, even when she needed Katoh's help at the last minute.

 

“Still applies now,” was the simple reply. “You dropped that sword quite easily. You are not as strong as you think you are, Adaar. You're not a different type of Qunari. You're barely a Qunari at all.”

 

“I'm not someone that's just going to fight everyone and steal from the weak. I wanted to help when you found me. I had blood all over me from trying to fight. From trying to save my village. I didn't just hide in my home like some of the others around here!” Aella shouted, storming over to Katoh and grabbing her shirt in her fists. “All the stories you hear, the Qunari's are the bad guys. I'm different than that!”

 

They stood at similar heights, and Aella knew that in a year or so, she would be taller than her. Still, that didn't stop her from feeling annoyance at her postponed growth spurt. Katoh adjusted her position, standing an inch taller than her with the help of her horns. She stepped into Aella's space, pushing her back when she wouldn't let go of her clothes. Aella stumbled and growled, tearing her hand from the material so she could hit her in the face.

 

That's when contact was made, but not from her fist. Katoh's fist slammed into Aella's face much quicker than hers. She was knocked into the dirt before her own punch could even graze a cheekbone. She felt the crack, and heard the crunch of her bone being crushed from the force of Katoh's fist. The sound made her feel squeamish as she shouted in pain. Her hand shot up to her nose that was gushing blood. If this was what a broken nose felt like, she'd have to apologise to Bradley for breaking his all those years ago.

 

Her eyes welled at the thumping pain spreading over her entire face. Blood smeared and dripped off her chin. Katoh moved closer to her, but Aella kicked her legs out, aiming to trip her up. When Katoh didn't fall, she scrambled for a weapon, but a foot twisted itself and trapped her wrist to the ground.

 

“Get off me!” Aella snapped and strained her arm against the boot that pressed down enough to trap her, but not enough to crush any bones. Still, she wasn't exactly paying attention to how gentle Katoh was being when her nose was currently broken and she was covered in dirt.

 

“No, you needed to be taught a lesson.” Katoh explained as if she was a teacher that had forced Aella to write lines about how she wont disrupt Miriam's education with needless flirting.

 

“And what lesson is that? To dodge a fist instead of blocking it with my face?” Aella scoffed and slumped on the ground, tired of struggling when nothing was going to move Katoh off her. She turned her head to the side so she wouldn't choke on her own blood and spat it out. She pouted when not even a little bit sprayed over Katoh's boots.

 

Katoh's lips tugged at the girl beneath her. Just a teenager, but with so much fight. “Do you know why I'm here, Adaar?” She questioned with an amused warmth in her voice. The tone caught Aella's interest and she peaked up at Katoh for a second before shrugging.

 

“I ain't your wife,” she muttered to which Katoh pursed her lips, stopping a smile further spreading across her face.

 

“Quite right. You know that I am part of a mercenary group, but my specific job is recruitment.” Katoh lifted her foot from Aella's arm and watched her as she sat up. Her eyebrows were furrowed, and when she looked up at her, she winced and snapped her head back down. She remained silent, letting Katoh continue. “I came here because I remembered you.”

 

“You remembered saving me.” Aella muttered and rolled her eyes. Katoh chuckled and Aella grumbled and crossed her arms across her chest.

 

“I also remember the work you and your friend put in to defending your village. Not all mercenary members have that passion, but it's certainly welcome.” Katoh explained. She reached her hand down to help Aella stand, despite her initial reluctance.

 

“Is a broken nose an initiation process, because I've already done Bradley's.” Aella muttered. Her chest was tight at being recognised for something. She frowned, not ever expecting this sort of thing to happen to her. She was so adamant at denying her Qunari heritage and blood that she just assumed she was going to take up some sort of village job. She had plans of being a manual worker, or a farmer like her mother.

 

“No, the Valo-Kas mercenary group usually doesn't initiate its members.” Katoh had softened her voice slightly. It wasn't as sharp for just a moment. “That was to knock some sense into you.”

 

“Knock some sense into me? But why?” Aella snapped her head to the woman in front of her.

 

“Because you were wrong. You were talking through your arse, that's why.” Katoh stated bluntly. “You have this village's prejudices against the Qunari race, but how many Qunari's have you actually met? My bet is that I'm the first one.”

 

Katoh raised her eyebrows, challenging Aella to argue her point. Aella pursed her lips and looked like she wanted to argue back. She knew Katoh was right, so she sighed. “I guess I messed up my chances of joining your merry band then.”

 

“Not necessarily,” came the quick reply. “It all depends on if you've learnt your lesson. Not all Qunari's are the villains.”

 

“They just apparently like breaking noses.” Aella scoffed but let herself look at Katoh once more. She wasn't as tense at before. Oddly enough, she respected Katoh for what she had done. Nobody had ever punched her like that before. Yes, Bradley and her got into quite a few scuffles, but she always ended up on top. This time, she had her arse handed to her. And her nose too.

 

“Perhaps they do.” Katoh was smiling at her slightly. The type of smile that didn't really move the mouth, but softened the eyes. “I think with some training you could be an asset to the merc group, but only if you push your prejudices aside. Judge people on the character they put before you, not the character others have assumed for them.”

 

Aella watched Katoh curiously before huffed out air from her mouth. Her nose was currently preoccupied to snort. “Are you a mother, Katoh?”

 

Katoh barked a laugh and smacked Aella on the back as a friendly gesture. Aella groaned at the pain and nudged Katoh away from her, a small tug on the corner of her lips. “I suppose you could say that I'm used to looking after others, even if they aren't my own blood. If you do join the Valo-Kas I promise I'll keep my lectures to a minimum.”

 

“As long as I don't say idiotic things, right?” Aella questioned. She hesitated before looking away in a moment of shyness. “Which I'm sorry for, by the way.”

 

“Yes, I assumed as much. A punch to the face tends to give some people clarity of mind.” Katoh said. Aella rolled her eyes, but even that movement made her face hurt.

 

“Just so you know, I'd be making a face at you if it didn't pain me to move it,” Aella grumbled, but still smirked underneath her hand that swiped away some of the blood.

 

“Ah, I am sure. You teenagers tend to make all sorts of faces.”

 

“You make me sound like a child. It's been two years since you last saw me.” Aella argued.

 

“Seventeen is still a teenager, Adaar.” Katoh watched as Aella went to contest her point. “Even if you are almost eighteen. That's what you were going to protest, yes?”

 

“...no,” Aella hesitated, but shook her head.

 

“Alright, Adaar.” Katoh rolled her eyes and walked over to her fallen sword. She looked it over and then held it out for Aella to take. “You may keep this if you're interested in joining the Valo-Kas.”

 

“And if I'm not?” Aella asked, even though her hand shot out to grab the hilt.

 

“Then consider it an apology for breaking your nose.” Katoh bowed her head slightly and stepped away from Aella. “I will be at the inn if you are interested in my offer.”

 

Aella watched as Katoh picked up the rest of her equipment, leaving with an empty sheath hooked at her belt. Aella took a moment before she moved her eyes to look at the long sword she held in her hands. She hadn't noticed that it was polished when she first held it. Intricate details curved around the shaft and continued their way up the blade. She could see the shine underneath the dirt, making her want to swipe the mud away.

 

Aella's thoughts focused on the speech Katoh had given to her. She felt guilt weigh her down at judging an entire race as if it was nothing. She was different? What a load of bollocks. Everyone was going to be different. Bradley was a different person to Miriam, who was a different person to her mother. They were all human and were all different.

 

“Ugh, I'm such an idiot.” Aella muttered as she began to walk. She swooshed her sword every now and again and smiled softly, catching the reflection of her horns for only moment. Maybe she would take Katoh up on her offer.

 


	4. Protection of the Conclave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Valo-Kas gets hired as protection for the meeting between the Templars and Mages. Aella knew her life was dangerous. She expected death to take her any day on the job, but this was a bit different. Not quite sure if different was better.

Shokrakar and Katoh watched as their mercenary group bustled about in the upcoming moments of their latest mission. Of course, Shokrakar was the leader of the group, but she had to have someone to rely on. Creating a mercenary group outside of the Qun wasn't the best received idea, and while Shokrakar didn't care if it was well received or not, a leader was nothing without their people. And Katoh was one of the first of her people. One of the first to join the Valo-Kas while it was still in its infant stages. One of the people that collected contacts and recruited new mercenaries to the group.

They stood next to each other. Shokrakar leaning against the support of a tent that had yet to be packed up, arms folded and legs crossed casually. Katoh on the other hand was stiff. Her shoulders were pushed back and her eyes flitted to the members, double checking everything they were doing.

There were fingers circling maps as voices mingled and animated their plans aloud. Other hands were busy checking their supplies, replenishing arrows, sharpening their swords. Bubbles of voices popped as potions were packed, spell books were secured against belts, bows were slung across their backs, swords were sheathed. They were packed and ready to go, save for the tent Shokrakar was leaning against.

Katoh's eyes scanned and stopped on two people chatting. Aella, who stood much taller that when they first met, was smiling down at one of the newest recruits. Her eyes closed as a belly laugh erupted from her and she swung her hand to pat the new kid on the shoulder.

Hissra was her name, Katoh remembered. She was small, lithe, and scathing with the look she shot at Aella. The expression caused the spread of amusement through Aella's features as she raised her hands in surrender. Brandon pulled out a piece of paper, scratching a tally mark next to her name.

Hissra had dark skin and pale eyes that always pierced wounds through anyone that looked at her the wrong way. Or looked at her in general. Her sharp stare became such a common occurrence that Bradley decided to keep tally of who received the most glares.

“You seem a bit stressed, Hissra? Are you nervous?” Aella questioned with an eyebrow raised. There was concern tinged in her voice, but Hissra narrowed her eyes on the slight curve of Aella's lips and scoffed.

“No,” was her curt reply, and Aella's eyes softened for a moment. Hissra's head snapped away from her. “Don't tell me it's okay to be nervous, Aella.”

“Ah, but why wouldn't it be? Not everyone's born fearless Hissra. Except Shokrakar probably.” Aella smiled slightly, glancing at their leader who was staring back at them. Aella grinned but quickly turned her eyes back to Hissra. The motion made Katoh stifle a chuckle. All these years of training and battling, and Aella still reacted like a child that had been caught trying to steal recently baked cookies.

“She's pretty fearless. She rejected the Qun, rejected any re-education, and basically gave the Qun the middle finger.” Aella explained to Hissra who's eyebrows had furrowed at her previous statement.

“That sounds like something you would do, Adaar,” Hissra mumbled and grabbed her bow, hanging it on her back. She averted her eyes away from Aella and fiddled with the buckles on her armour.

Aella's eyebrows lifted before a lazy smile slipped on her face. “Not sure if I'd be up for all that effort. Probably do the middle finger part though.” Her last sentence was added as an afterthought, lifting more amusement to her lips.

“Bradley knows that much,” Hissra looked up at Aella and wore a smirk of her own for a split second. As quickly as it came, it fell from her face and she grew serious again. Hissra tensed, expecting a hand to smack her on the back again, but Aella grinned, flashing a mouth full of teeth instead. Her lips fell to their familiar slope and Aella gave a lazy wink before turning to the rest of their team.

“Alright, lets do a good job out there. No stupid mistakes,” Aella glanced to people who had gathered around her. “I'm looking at you Bradley.”

“When are you not, Adaar?” was the quick reply from Bradley that only made Aella chuckle and slap a hand on his shoulder. He winced and the forced out a sarcastic laugh. His hand straightened and chopped at Aella's ribs. She grunted but otherwise continued with her conversation, earning a pleased look from her friend.

“Today's specifications say we're the middle men. Keep the peace between these Templars and Mages. I expect there to be some tension between them, but they say they're here for good. For an alliance apparently.” Aella explained.

“You make it seem like you don't have much faith in them, Adaar.” Shokrakar pushed away from her tent. She looked up at Aella with a curious expression, eyes squinted, but mouth titled up.

“I wouldn't say I have no faith in all of them,” Aella began. She shrugged and put a hand on her hip where her sword was hooked. “I just expect there to be resistance. Passion is painted to be a good thing, but I've seen it used for destruction. I don't see why it wouldn't happen now.”

“Let's prepare ourselves for a few fights then,” Shokrakar bellowed. Her eyes were bright, mischief and excitement swimming in them. She looked at every member of the Valo-Kas that had gathered round, staring them dead in the eyes. Passing her excitement onto most of them. “Give them our money's worth of effort. Got it?”

A chorus of shouts echoed around the group. Their war cries mingled, strengthening each other before they dispersed, ready to enter the Temple as hired bodyguards. They were alert. Everything they did was what they'd trained for. They felt strong. They felt prepared.

But soon, Aella would realise that they were not prepared at all.

 

 

Aella, Hissra and a few others were standing in position in the main room. Aella was positioned near the entrance where Chantry members bustled in, followed by Mages, and then Templars. They moved to their own sections with barely any mingling between the different groups. Mages were on the left, Templars on the right. The Chantry situated between the two.

Aella frowned as she straightened her posture, gaining an extra couple of inches. Wasn't this supposed to be a meeting on their alliance? The air felt thick and Aella took a deep breath as she scanned the room. There were some were Elves, but most were Human. None were Qunari, save for a few members in the Valo-Kas that were dotted around the hall.

Almost all the seats were filled with urgency. Hands fidgeted on their clothes while conversations murmured. Feet tapped and armour clattered. Chairs dragged, scraped, wobbled, creaked. All these sounds added to the forced bustle of the room as they waited on the last person to arrive.

If there was a spark, the room probably would have lit up in flames. They weren't breathing in oxygen any more. They were breathing in anticipation as each guest glanced at the empty seat reserved for Divine Justinia.

Aella noticed the stiff shoulders and the murmurs being passed along the groups. Aella's gut churned as her mind filtered through the reasons for The Divine's no show, but none of them made sense to her. Why would the person who was the biggest advocate of this alliance not be the first person in the room?

She looked looking away from the chair and made eye contact with Shokrakar. Her lips were pulled straight and she gave a subtle nod before moving over to Hissra, whispering something in her ear.

Aella needed no other action. She slipped out of the room and stormed down the corridor blindly. She brushed over the restored rugs and tapestries that ran along the floor and clung to the structures that jutted out of the walls.

In her search for The Divine, she kicked the edge of a rug that had curled over at its end. It's frayed edges splayed out in the direction that something or someone had been travelling in. Aella narrowed her eyes and followed the direction the rug curved in, groaning when she was led down a dark corridor.

“Of course this would be the direction. Can't have anyone tripping in front of the chantry candles,” Aella droned quietly, tugging her sword away from her straps. Little bits of light filtered across the stone walls and occasionally glinted off Aella's sword. She paid no mind to the intricate details when her eyes locked onto something different.

Light seeped out from under a large door, making her legs move quicker. She heard the rumbles of voices and desperation before the white light bled into red. There was the sound of struggling and talking. The low rumble was mostly one sided until she heard a different voice scream in response.

“Someone help me!” came the accent, thick with pain before a shout erupted from them. Aella slammed her hands onto the wood, forcing the door to smack against the wall. She lifted her sword and ran in, but was caught off guard at the image in front of her. Divine Justinia was wrapped up in red tendrils that suspended her in the air at the hands of Grey Wardens.

Hovering in front of The Divine was some sort of monster with the face of a man. Or at least part of a face anyway. From what Aella could see, it was scarred and stretched back by pieces of material that were a dull crimson, bordering on black in places. The material was shattered over more than just his face. It stuck to his chest, mingling with his skin and clothes, melding them into one.

He had normal eyes, nose, mouth. This creature looked to be a man in that aspect, but they were unnaturally tall, their arms too sharp and angled, their hands too large for their body. Claws instead of fingers clutched onto a sphere engraved with patterns. It glowed green and was pointed towards The Divine's chest, dragging out energy from her chest.

“What the _fuck_ is going on here?!” Aella growled, glaring at the monster when it turned to her. Her jaw set straight and she stepped forward, ready to swing her sword at him. He sneered at her, but before he could lash out, The Divine used her strength to knock the ball from his hands.

As soon as it slammed onto the ground and rolled, Aella was on the move for it. She had no idea what it was doing to the Divine, all she knew was that she was hired to keep the peace, and that sure as hell wasn't going to happen if The Divine died at the hands of this monster-man.

The man's eyes widened as Aella picked up the orb from the ground. He roared as he surged towards her, but she clung onto the metal as green and white light shocked her body. She cried in pain and then pushed it in the direction the man was advancing on her.

Her insides felt like they were being electrocuted over and over again. A heavy weight pressed against her chest. Her head felt like it was being cracked in two. Aella struggled to breathe, to move, to do anything. Whatever power the orb held was enveloping her, and it fucking burned. The pain hurt so much she felt like her teeth could bleed, and it only seemed to get stronger and stronger.

Her veins grew hotter, and she wanted to rip her left arm out of her socket. It was only when everything burned white did Aella pass out. It was that moment where she felt sweet relief for a few seconds, but like most good things, it didn't last for very long.  
The orb was gone from her hand, and she lay on the ground that was uneven and damp. Her eyes cracked open and a gasp was pulled from Aella as she sat up on an unfamiliar ground. Under an unfamiliar sky. Everything was dull and murky with a green colour tainting every aspect of her vision.

“What the...” Aella croaked. She pulled herself into a standing position and looked around. There were no walls around her, no Divine floating in the air by magic, no archdemon surging toward her. The room she was in was gone, replaced by this place Aella had never seen before.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Feel free to give a kudo and a comment if you want to say something. Anything. Please talk to me.


End file.
